bayedsolid Chapter 507 [The Legend of Zhen Huan 42]
Chapter 507 [The Legend of Zhen Huan 42]
When Shen Meizhuang learned that An Lingrong was named the Princess of the County by the Emperor, she could not help but feel a little envious. She knew very well that her background was different from An Lingrong's, but now An Lingrong had received such an honor, which made her feel a little lost and helpless. After all, the Princess of the County was a title of the second rank, with a high status. Even though she was the daughter of a minister, she would have to greet An Lingrong when she saw her in the future.
After a sleepless night of thinking, Shen Meizhuang made up her mind to take action. The next morning, she went straight to the Yangxin Palace with her maid without hesitation.
When she arrived at the Yangxin Palace, she was so nervous that she felt like a deer beating wildly. However, she still mustered up the courage to greet Yinzhen and said, "Your Majesty, I am here to pay my respects to you. I hope your Majesty will be blessed with good health. I came here today to ask for something, and I hope your Majesty will grant it."
Yinzhen frowned slightly and asked, "What's the matter? Tell me about it."
Shen Meizhuang took a deep breath and said slowly: "I have received strict education at home since I was young. My family has always regarded me as a future lady and mistress of a family. Therefore, I hope that the emperor can grant me an imperial decree to arrange a marriage for me. I know that even if I return home, I can live a stable life. But I am worried that my younger sister at home will not be able to get married, so I beg the emperor to designate a marriage for me."
Yinzhen was silent for a moment, then said, "Have you thought about whether you have any specific requirements for the person you want to marry?"
Shen Meizhuang quickly shook her head and replied, "I don't have too many extravagant requests. I just hope that the other party can treat me well."
Yinzhen nodded and said, "Okay, then you go back and wait for news. I need some time to think about it."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I'll take my leave." Shen Meizhuang bowed and left.
As night fell and the lights came on, Yinzhen came to Kunning Palace and said to Youyou, "My dear, Concubine Shen came to me today and said that she hoped I could arrange a marriage for her, but she did not mention any specific requirements and only let me make the decision on my own. Do you have any suitable candidates to recommend?"
Youyou frowned slightly, thought for a moment and then asked, "Did she put forward any conditions or requirements? For example, family background, character and appearance, etc."
Yinzhen shook his head and replied, "No, she just asked me to make the decision for her."
Youyou continued to ask: "Does your husband have a suitable candidate in mind?"
Yinzhen sighed softly and said helplessly: "I haven't thought about it yet, so I want to hear your opinion."
Youyou pondered for a moment and said slowly: "If we want to arrange a marriage for Concubine Shen, there are only two options. One is to marry a member of the royal family, and the other is to choose a son-in-law from the family of a minister in the court."
Yinzhen nodded in agreement, and then asked: "In your opinion, which of these two options is more appropriate?"
After careful consideration, Youyou replied: "If she marries a member of the royal family, it will also increase the family's honor; and if she marries a court official, that's also fine, but I don't know who in the royal family has not been married, and which young man in the court has not been married."
After hearing this, Yinzhen fell into deep thought, and spoke after a while: "Among the royal family, I think of one person, that is the Seventeenth Prince Yunli. He is still unmarried, and he is intelligent and has outstanding literary talent. He is a good candidate. In addition, Shen Beile is also an option, but he is still young, so he can be ignored for the time being. In this case, the most suitable one is the Seventeenth Prince. However, I heard that he seems to be a non-marriageist and insists on finding true love before getting married, so he has been delaying until now."
"I remember that Meng Jingxian from the Duke of Pei's Mansion seemed to like Prince Guo, right? It seems like she has been working hard for Prince Guo until she became an old maid." Youyou said thoughtfully.
"Yes, it seems so. Qingqing, you want to..." Yinzhen looked at Youyou and seemed to have guessed her thoughts.
"Meng Jingxian's family background is worthy of Prince Guo. If Prince Guo doesn't like her, he should tell her face to face. He has made the girl grow up to be an old maid. Isn't this harming the girl? So Prince Guo is also responsible for this matter." Youyou said righteously.
"Qingqing, what you said makes a lot of sense." Yinzhen nodded in agreement.
"Why not have the Emperor issue an edict to grant a marriage between Prince Guo and Meng Jingxian?" Youyou suggested.
"But will Prince Seventeen refuse to accept the imperial edict?" Yinzhen asked with some concern.
"Husband, what are you afraid of? You are the emperor first, and then the elder brother of Prince Guo. I believe Prince Guo would not dare to disobey your will easily. Moreover, he has not married yet. As his elder brother, it is reasonable for you to arrange a marriage for him." Youyou comforted.
"Okay, then let's do as you say. But I'm still a little worried that the Seventeenth Prince will be unhappy." Yinzhen said hesitantly.
"Husband, don't worry. If Prince Guo really likes other women, he can wait until later to marry them into the mansion. After all, he is still young and has plenty of time to find his own happiness." Youyou said with a smile.
"Okay, I'll listen to you. I'll issue an order right now." Yinzhen finally made up his mind and decided to grant marriage to Prince Guo and Meng Jingxian. He knew that Meng Jingxian was deeply in love with Prince Guo, and it would be a good thing if he could facilitate this marriage.
However, he suddenly realized: "That's not right. Aren't we discussing Shen Meizhuang? How did it involve Meng Jingxian?" He looked at Youyou with confusion in his eyes.
Youyou smiled slightly and explained, "I think Shen Meizhuang can also marry into Prince Guo's mansion. What do you think, my husband? Prince Guo's family background is also good and he is completely worthy of Shen Meizhuang." Her eyes were firm and gentle, as if she saw a happy future for Shen Meizhuang.
Yinzhen nodded in agreement. Then he asked, "Well, who do you prefer as your first wife, Meng Jingxian or Shen Meizhuang?" He wanted to hear what Youyou really thought.
Youyou thought for a moment and replied, "After all, Meng Jingxian's family background is slightly better than Shen Meizhuang's. Although the Duke of Pei's Mansion has fallen into decline, its foundation is still there. Meng Jingxian can be the legitimate wife, and Shen Meizhuang can be the concubine. When the Qing Dynasty entered the pass, the status of the legitimate wife and the concubine was equal."
Yinzhen smiled and agreed, knowing that Youyou had considered everything carefully, so he said, "Okay." Just like that, they reached an agreement and prepared for the marriage between Prince Guo and Meng Jingxian and Shen Meizhuang.
On the morning of the second day, Yinzhen issued an imperial decree, naming Meng Jingxian as the legitimate wife of Prince Guo, and granting Shen Meizhuang as the concubine of Prince Guo. This sudden news shocked and surprised everyone.
After Shen Meizhuang heard this, she felt a little regretful, but she knew that she could not become the legitimate wife. However, the palace of Prince Guo was clean and tidy, without complicated interpersonal relationships, and the status of the concubine was equally noble and had been included in the royal jade book. In this way, the identity of the concubine was not unacceptable.
When Zhen Huan learned that Shen Meizhuang was married to Prince Guo as a concubine by the Emperor, she could not help but feel surprised. She could not imagine that Shen Meizhuang, who had always been proud, would be willing to be a concubine. Although the difference between a concubine and a legitimate wife is not big, she is still a concubine after all, and her status is still lower than that of a legitimate wife. Zhen Huan knew the difference very well, so she was puzzled by Shen Meizhuang's choice.
In the mansion of Duke Pei, Meng Jingxian was delighted to learn that the emperor had granted her marriage to Prince Guo and that she would become his legitimate wife. She secretly rejoiced that all these years of waiting and anticipation had finally paid off. As a little girl, she had always had a crush on Prince Guo, and now she was finally able to marry him, fulfilling her long-cherished wish. Although she knew that there would be a concubine who would also enter the palace, she firmly believed that as long as she did not make any mistakes, no one could shake her position as the legitimate wife. Even if Prince Guo might change his mind and fall in love with someone else in the future, she would still be the legitimate wife, and this was an unchangeable fact.
However, unlike Meng Jingxian, Prince Guo was very shocked. He originally thought that his brother would understand his idea and wait for him to find his beloved before getting married. But unexpectedly, his brother suddenly granted him a marriage and arranged two wives, one for the main wife and one for the side wife. This sudden decision caught him off guard and he was completely unprepared. He couldn't help but start to wonder why his brother made such an arrangement? Were there other factors that influenced this decision? And how should he face the upcoming wedding?